Pages

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

I've gotten a few emails about how I created the signatures for my last post of my chunky journal.

Here's a few shots of what I started with:

I went through and tore out every other page. I then folded each page in half like shown below to create the signatures:

Can you see why I hesitated to share these pics?? ROFL!! But this is me, warts, messy work space and all ;P

I love the deckled edges from tearing out of the book. I alternated the deckled edges both up and down to give it a nice uniform (ish) deckled edge look to the journal. I used five pages for each signature, which is just a bundle of pages together.

I created the cover from medium weight chipboard and duct tape. The covers were painted with DecoArt American Paints and collaged with scrapbooking papers, some of the old text pages and printed tissue papers:

This is a different cover than the one I painted with a face. I then created a little template so I knew where to punch my holes in the binding with an awl.

Then I used the same template on each signature ( again, just a bundle of 5 pages folded together) to punch three holes in the center.

Putting the bundles in the center of a notebook, phonebook, or something thick helps hold the signatures in place while you are punching them. I also clip the signatures together and keep them clipped until they are sewn in.

I use wax linen to stitch the signatures in. There's a shot of the brand I purchased on ebay. I've tried lots of others but I find the ones I can get in my local stores are too thick. You could also use plain old embroidery floss but the wax thread works wonders for tying a knot and keeping it tight.

Here's a shot from the top showing how they look all stitched in. The sewing of the signatures in is quite easy but unfortunately I don't have any process shots of that part!! Here is a great tutorial with a slightly different style of journal but great visuals on how to do the stitching.

Thanks so much for stopping by and I HOPE this is informative and not too confusing! Bookbinding is definitely like riding a bike for me. Slightly difficult when you start but once you got it, you GOT it =0)

Sunday, September 21, 2014

I was tearing pages out of an old book that I've been using as a journal for excess paint, etc. When I have extra paint leftover on my palette I scrape it in there, or clean off stencils, that sort of thing. It was getting sort of thick so I was thinning out the pages as I went and yesterday I just bit the bullet and thinned out the entire book (yes, it was a fat book!!) I ended up with enough to make two (possibly three!) little chunky journals. The second one is still waiting for the signatures to be sewn it but here's the first one all done:

I can't wait to start filling it up! The color of these old pages and the feel of them is great!

I'm sorry I don't have any "how to" pics. I was working on it off and on all weekend and just sort of forgot to take process shots.

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

This really didn't start as having a bubble theme. It was more of a play with abstraction and glazing with watercolors. Some of those bubbles have layers and layers of different hues and it was amazing to watch how they changed and evolved.

A few of those bubbles have DecoArt Media Line Fluid Acrylics in Interfence Magenta and Violet over the layers of watercolors and copics. They are much more transparent than what they appear here. And YES!! You read that correctly, copics!! I haven't used them much at all in the past few years and it was so fun to see how wonderfully they worked on this hot pressed watercolor paper and a basecoat of watercolors. I noticed some of my nibs became tinted by some of the darker blues and purples but I scribbled off any excess pigments before putting them away and they seemed to have survived just fine. BUT as always, when I try something like this I know I am taking a risk of ruining a nib or two.

For now, she's done but I have a feeling I'll be doing some ink work in her hair ;)

Thursday, September 4, 2014

When I created my last painting (scroll down for yesterdays post) I ended up with a large puddle of heavy body white paint and a nice size puddle of a violet purple. I hate to let that much go to waste so I scraped it into an old book that was laying on my table. I had been using the old text pages for collage. The pages are so thin that I glued a few together to give it some ooomph.

And then the purple using my palette knife for both:

Here I was adding some texture into the wet paint with a little square of shelf liner:

Then it's just play time:

Daler Rowney FW Acrylic Inks

Then spritzed with water. It is magic to watch pigments travel through water!!!

Added turquoise chevron with my fav chevron roller (sorry, can no longer find some place that sells this!!)

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Painting this one really had me feeling nostalgic!! I am owing it to the fact that both my brother and I are expecting new grandbabies. Talking to my DIL about all of the planning she is doing to get ready for their (our) new bundle, whom I'm already calling "nugget", has probably helped spur that nostalgic feeling =0)

I used the DecoArt Media Fluid Acrylics which are a dream to paint with! They are so fluid and transparent. If you've never used fluid acrylics before just remember a little dab will do ya' =0)

I'm not sure I'm loving all of that baby's breath in her hair but I think I was channeling my inner 80's bride.. lol!

Can you see all the text showing through in her face? And I hadn't planned this next part but love the unexpected surprise of having two different styles of French writing show through on her chest (or heart).

My grandfather was the youngest in his family and the only boy. I have fond memories of sitting listening to him and all of his sisters speak together in french. It was so beautiful and try as I could, none of it "stuck". I wish I had been a little older and exposed to them more <3

About Me

Just a girl coloring her world one day at a time. Each day is a different blank page, card or canvas waiting to get inky, collaged, drawn on, doodled on, stenciled, .... you get the idea. Art supplies make me happy. Come on, let's make something pretty =0)